Mischief Brew

Mischief Brew still makes music for the same reasons they did in high school. According to lead singer Erik Petersen, his guitar and the road are as addictive as a bad habit.

“You’re angry; you need a release,” says Petersen, who also jams on guitar and mandolin for the folk-punk band. “We’re older now. We have jobs, houses, some of us have kids. But it never gets old, and it keeps coming back to you.”

More than a decade after forming, Mischief Brew is on tour once again to support a new record. This Is Not For Children comes out June 9 and is the first full-length record in their expansive collection not released on their own label, Fistolo Records — founded by Petersen and wife Denise Petersen in 2000.

While San Francisco label Alternative Tentacles will release the album, it still maintains the familiar DIY, lo-fi sound of the previous discography.

“We try to write songs that people would sing around a campfire,” Petersen says. “We want our songs to transcend the iPod or the normal way you’d listen to music.”

Mischief Brew only brings a three-piece band on this tour, so Petersen say they find creative ways to “spice up” their instrumentation. For example, drummer (Erik’s brother Chris Petersen) often uses pots and pans or gas cans in his drum kit. In the past, the band has employed a vibraharp, violins, trumpets and other found objects on stage.